Book Meme!

1. Favourite childhood book?
The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo. I love that book!

2. What are you reading right now?
The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas and Black Beauty by Anna Sewell. Two completely different books, I know!

3. What books do you have on request at the library?
None, to be honest. :P

4. Bad book habit?
If there's a line or section I really like then I dogear or underline. But Never with a nice or new copy of a book.

5. What do you currently have checked out at the library?
Pygmalion, the play that the musical My Fair Lady is based on. :) I got it for my sister from the campus library.
6. Do you have an e-reader?
I have a kindle app on my computer, but I prefer reading real books. They smell nice (new books and old books both have distinctive smells, I find), they feel great in your hands, and it just feels 'right' to me. :)

7. Do you prefer to read one book at a time, or several at once?
I'm able to read several books at once, unless I'm reading something very heavy, or intensive. Then I'd just rather concentrate on that one book.

8. Have your reading habits changed since starting a blog?
Not really. But I did find several good titles by reading other people's blogs! Like The Scarlet Pimpernel and Toilers of the Sea.

9. Least favourite book you read this year (so far?)
The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells. Meh.

10. Favourite book you've read this year (so far?)
A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens! I know it's probably really old and stuffy material, but for whatever reason it just clicked with me and I really like it. :)

11. How often do you read out of your comfort zone?
I don't know. Not that often probably, because my comfort zone consists of books that I know I will most likely enjoy, and I don't like wasting time on books I won't like.

12. What is your reading comfort zone?
I read a lot of classics, so I suppose those are the books I feel most comfortable with. Basically anything that isn't Young Adult literature or (certain kinds of) Sci Fi is fine with me! XD

13. Can you read on the bus?
Yeah. I don't ride the bus that often, but I can read in the car without getting sick.

14. Favourite place to read?
I like to read in our garage lying down on the couch with both doors open and air circulating in... sigh... it's so pleasant.

15. What is your policy on book lending?
I'd just like it back in as good condition as it was when I lent it. Wrinkled up on the spine and covers is fine, but if it comes back seriously trashed or damaged I'll probably feel a little angryful.

16. Do you ever dog-ear books?
Yes. Before you decide that I'm evil, hear me out. I don't dog-ear nice copies of books, or new copies of books. I did dog-ear the living daylights out of my battered copy of Les Miserables the first time I read it though. So many good lines and thoughts to keep track of!

17. Do you ever write in the margins of your books?
Only if it's something I have been told to take notes on. Or if it's a super lousy book (like The Near Witch) I'll write riffs and quips in the margins that mock the book. XD

18. Not even with text books?
I write in text book margins, except for my French one, that's on loan. :P

19. What is your favourite language to read in?
Pffft, English! I know a smidgen of French and Japanese, but not well enough to read whole novels. Wish I could though. :P

20. What makes you love a book?
Here's the list!
- A hero who does the right thing, but still has flaws
- Nice imagery and writing
- Really good ending lines!
- Interesting characters who feel real
- Vivid settings
- Interesting philosophical themes
- Books that provide Thought-Fodder!

21. What will inspire you to recommend a book?
I don't really reccomend books to my friends and family. Parly because I'm afraid of coming off as naggy, but also because I'm afraid of them reading the book, hating it, and thinking that I have bad taste in books. But I suppose the critera can be found in the previous question...

22. Favourite genres?
Classic Literature, but specifically drama like Charles Dickens, Jane Austen, and Victor Hugo. I also really like 'spooky' books, like Odd Thomas or Coraline. And Fantasy. Not really a sword and sorcery person, but Fantasy in general I find very appealing. :)

23. Genres you rarely read (but wish you did?)
I don't know, if I see a book that I like I usually make an effort to grab it, but maybe historical fiction? Mysteries too. I wish I could find our copy of the complete Sherlock Holmes, I read A Study in Scarlet and it was great!

24. Favourite biography?
Ummm..... Pass. I don't really read biographies.

25. Have you ever read a self-help book?
What the deuce are self-help books?

26. Favourite cookbook?
We have a cookbook that's just chocolate recipes, I used to actually carry that one around with me when I was a preteen. XD

27. Most inspirational book you've read this year (fiction or non-fiction)?
The Divine Romance by Fulton J. Sheen. :)

28. Favourite reading snack?
I don't usually eat when I read (book balancing issues, you know) but I usually read while I'm eating breakfast. So, cereal.

29. Name a case in which hype ruined your reading experience.
I don't know! I haven't read that many uber-hyped books. Well, I was pretty sick of the Hunger Games before I even cracked the spine on that one.

29. How often do you agree with critics about a book?
Eh, 50/50. There are some books I love that critics hate, and other ones that they love. So I don't know if they're wrong, or me. XD

30. How do you feel about giving bad/negative reviews?
I think they're fun to write! Mwahaha! No regrets here! Unless it's a book that somebody reccomended to me. In that case, I wouldn't even write a review, just quietly pretend that I never read it.

32. If you could read in a foreign language, which language would you chose?
Japanese or French!

34. The most intimidating book you’re too nervous to begin?
Little Dorrit by Charles Dickens. I hear it's really good, but.... I'm scared. XD

35. Favourite Poet?
I don't read a whole lot of poetry, it depresses me because I can't write that well. :P

38. Favourite fictional character?
SO MANY! Um, here's the list. :)
- Sydney Carton (A Tale of Two Cities)
-Atticus Finch and Scout (To Kill a Mockingbird)
- Jean Valjean, The Bishop, Eponine (Les Miserables)
- Despereaux (The Tale of Despereaux)
- Emma Woodhouse and Mr. Knightley (Emma)
- Catherine Morland and Henry Tilney (Northanger Abbey)
- Mr. Jarndyce (Bleak House)
- Gandalf and Sam Gamgee (The Lord of the Rings)
- Alexei 'Alyosha' Karamazov (The Brothers Karamazov)
-Elinor & Marianne Dashwood and Colonel Brandon (Sense and Sensibility)

39. Favourite fictional villain?
Again. So many. XD And a lot of these guys aren't really pure evil.
- He's not evil, but he is in the way of the hero, so I guess he belongs here. Javert (Les Miserables)
- Madame Defarge (A Tale of Two Cities)
- Smeagol (The Lord of the Rings)
- Roscuro (The Tale of Despereaux


40. Books I'm most likely to bring on holiday?
Um, whatever I happen to be reading at the moment.

41. The longest I've gone without reading.
I haven't kept track. :)

42. Name a book that you could/would not finish.
Wuthering Heights. Ugh, that book is TURGID!! I wish I could find somebody who likes it and ask them what they see in it!

43. What distracts you easily when you’re reading?
The TV.

44. Favourite film adaptation of a novel?
I really like Sense and Sensibility (1995)!

45. Most disappointing film adaptation?
Eh, the 1980 A Tale of Two Cities TV movie. It was wrong on so many little levels that I just didn't like it that much. I prefer the cheesy one from 1989. I mean, that one wasn't perfect, but at least we had a blast watching it! XD

46. The most money I've ever spent in the bookstore at one time?
35 bucks for a piano textbook. ._.

47. How often do you skim a book before reading it?
I sometimes check out the first chapter, but a lot of the time I go into books 'blind', as it were.

48. What would cause you to stop reading a book half-way through?
A turgid pace that doens't take the book anywhere, characters who don't make sense, and heroines who the author keeps claiming are 'special', while they're really just like every other generic heroine out there. Oh, and teen romance. And by teen romance, I don't mean the common situation in older books where people got married at 17. I mean teenagers slurping each other and going on and on about how different they are from everyone else. Ugh.

49. Do you like to keep your books organised?
Yeah, but I haven't got them very organized at the moment. See, I don't have a bookshelf, so my rather large collection is somewhat scattered around my room. :P

50. Do you prefer to keep books or give them away once you've read them?
Wha? I keep my books, because (a) I like just opening to a favorite part and reading (b) A book I really like is kind of like a friend. Call me selfish or hording, but I wouldn't really want to give it away unless I had multiple copies.

53. A book you didn't expect to like but did?
I don't know. I hardly ever read outside of my comfort zone, because I'm lame like that. Well, I thought To Kill a Mockingbird would be dry and preachy, like most 'important books'. But it was actually a very moving story and one of my favorite books. :)

54. A book that you expected to like but didn't?
Emily of New Moon. Grrr, I hate that book. Didn't even finish it.

55. Favourite guilt-free, pleasure reading?
Odd Thomas! Pretty much any Dean Koontz, really. :)

Gotta go! Thanks for reading!